<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">The government today clarified that Aadhaar is desirable but not mandatory to avail benefits under the Ayushman Bharat scheme providing health insurance to poor families.  </div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><br />''</div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">Health Minister J P Nadda confirmed that the government will provide services to all eligible beneficiaries with or without Aadhaar card. </div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><br />''</div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">The scheme is aimed at providing an insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh per year for hospitalisation to 10.74 crore poor families.</div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><br />''</div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">The clarification of the Health Ministry came after a section of media reported that the use of Aadhaar Card will be a must to avail benefits under the Ayushman Bharat. The Ministry termed the report as factually incorrect. </div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><br />''</div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">The Ministry said, the notification of the Ayushman Bharat – National Health Protection Mission, being issued by it under the Aadhaar Act, merely enables the implementing agencies to ask beneficiaries for Aadhaar Card to authenticate their identity. </div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><br />''</div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">In order to authenticate the identity of beneficiaries accurately, the use of Aadhaar card is preferable, but it is not a must.  It said, there will be no denial of benefit for want of Aadhaar number. </div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><br />''</div>''<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">The Ministry said, the draft notification also provides for exception handling mechanism – production of alternative identification mechanisms such as ration card, voter ID card, MGNREGA card among others in case the beneficiary does not have Aadhaar number. </div>''<div class="yj6qo" style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"></div>''<div class="adL" style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"> </div>''<div><br />''</div>